type of man that would have made his father and grandfather proud. That role included dressing the part.
However, Cristo hadn’t felt the need for business attire, even though they were dealing with a very big contract that involved the sale of Niko’s international hotel chain to Cristo. Thankfully the meeting had gone quite well. The changes to the terms of the contract were minor. So why was he so uptight? So out of sorts?
The answer immediately came to him in the vision of Sofia. He strode into the bungalow, where he uncharacteristically tossed his tie over the back of the couch, followed by his suit jacket. Why had she looked at him as if he were the Big Bad Wolf and she were Little Red Riding Hood? Had he really been that gruff?
He gave himself a mental shake as he sat down at the spacious desk and turned on his laptop. He’d be lost without it. Immediately his email software popped up on the screen. Forty-three new emails since that morning. All appeared to be business related. He inwardly groaned. They’d have to wait a little longer.
Niko opened a new email and started typing a note to his legal team. Sofia’s panic-stricken face as she’d rushed out the door came to him. He shoved the image to the back of his mind as he transcribed his hasty notes into something more understandable.
When he’d finished proofreading the rather lengthy email, he pressed Send. He soon found three more emails had landed in his inbox. He leaned back in his chair as the memory of Sofia continued to plague him.
What had she wanted? Why had she looked so upset? He couldn’t fully focus on his work until he had answers.
Niko strode over to the phone and was quickly connected with the front desk. He couldn’t come straight out and request they send over Sofia. It would raise too many questions. Instead he requested the maid who’d cleaned his room to stop by, as he’d misplaced some papers and needed to know if she’d seen them. He assured the desk clerk that no crime had been committed. He just needed a bit of help.
Not more than five minutes later, there was a knock at the door. Niko opened it to find Sofia holding a stack of plush white towels as though they were a shield. “Hi. Thanks for coming back.”
Her gaze didn’t quite meet his. “I...I didn’t see any papers.”
He arched a brow. “And you would know this how? You took off so fast this morning that you didn’t have time to look around.”
“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know you were in the bungalow.”
After being up late into the night working, he’d slept in. He’d forgotten to put out the do-not-disturb placard. That answered some of his questions but not all of them. “I understand about the mix-up this morning, but we still need to talk.”
Panic reflected in her brown eyes. “We...we do.”
He got the feeling from her awkward stance and the way her gaze didn’t quite meet his that whatever she had to say he wasn’t going to like it. Not one little bit. It was like he’d walked in on the middle of a play and he had absolutely no idea what was going on.
If he was smart, he’d just make a quick excuse to disentangle himself from Sofia right here and now. But what came out of his mouth was something entirely different. “Come inside.”
She hesitated before moving past him, taking great pains to keep some distance between them. This was not the way he’d expected her to act after their amazing night together. In fact, it was exactly the opposite.
When she stood in the middle of the living room, clenching and unclenching her hands, he said, “You can have a seat.”
She perched on the edge of the couch. She laced her fingers together and rested them in her lap. The awkward silence stretched out.
“What did you want to discuss?” Surely it couldn’t be as serious as her body language indicated. Perhaps she regretted running out on him the morning after the wedding and she wanted to know if they could start over.
The thought of letting her down weighed on him. He’d really enjoyed getting to know her. She’d been so easy to be around. But as amazing as he found her, he wasn’t at a place in his life where he could even think about a serious relationship. Maybe it wasn’t right—wasn’t fair—but neither would lying to her. In the end, it would hurt her more.
His gaze met hers. There was a vulnerability in her eyes that evoked a protective side of him he hadn’t been aware of before that moment. Her eyes grew shiny as though she were about to burst into tears at any moment.
No. Please. Not that.
Niko sat down on an adjacent armchair, uncomfortable with the thought of dealing with an emotional woman. He had absolutely no experience in that area. He wasn’t a love-’em-and-leave-’em kinda guy. But on the rare occasions he spent the evening in a woman’s company, whether for a fund-raiser or a business dinner, he made sure she knew up front that there would never be anything serious between them.
Had he told Sofia that? His memory was a bit fuzzy. He remembered when he’d first approached her at the wedding reception. She’d been sitting all alone at the bridal table. He’d been drawn to her, unable to resist talking to her.
Her smile had been the first thing he noticed. It had lit up her whole face, and it was infectious. The evening had been full of dancing and sparkling wine. Then more dancing, more laughing and more wine. He honestly hadn’t wanted the night to end.
The woman sitting before him didn’t resemble the engaging, bubbly woman at his cousin’s wedding—she may look the same, but it was obvious something major had changed. What could it be? Why did she look as though she had the weight of the world on her delicate shoulders?
He drew his thoughts up short. Whatever was bothering her, he wasn’t the one to resolve it. As much as he wanted to ride to her rescue, he was only in town for the night. There simply wasn’t enough time—or so he tried to tell himself.
* * *
Sofia had no idea why Niko had requested her presence. Obviously, it wasn’t to locate any missing papers or to restock his towels. Realizing she was still holding the fresh linens, she placed them on the couch next to her. She knew for a fact he had more than enough fresh towels because once he’d departed the bungalow that morning, she’d rushed back in. She’d done her fastest, most thorough cleaning job to date. So whatever he wanted had absolutely nothing to do with housekeeping.
And by the serious look on his face, he wasn’t anxious to pick up where they’d left off. So where did that leave them? Was he just upset about finding her in his room? Or did he know about her pregnancy? No, impossible. She hadn’t told a soul.
The best course of action was to get it all out there in the open, but her mouth refused to cooperate. She could feel Niko’s gaze on her, and she averted her eyes to the pattern on the rug. Her stomach quivered.
Why was she letting herself get all twisted up in knots? It wasn’t as if she wanted anything from him. Quite the contrary. She planned to take care of the baby on her own.
Niko cleared his throat. “Listen, I know you probably came here expecting us to pick up where we left off—”
“What? No, I didn’t.” Was that what he was expecting? Another clandestine hookup before he left?
His eyes widened. “You didn’t?”
“What do you take me for?” Sofia pressed her lips together, holding back a stinging comment. Just because he was sexy and rich didn’t mean she was going to throw herself at him. Was that how little he thought of her?
“I apologize if I jumped to the wrong conclusion.” The look in his eyes said he didn’t quite believe her. “Then why did you agree that we needed to talk?”
“I...I...” Her stomach lurched nauseously.
She jumped to her feet, not about to get sick in front of him. It was time to make a hasty exit. She would admit to her pregnancy later, when she wasn’t so nervous.